I could have sworn I watched LA win 7 TDF titles, but the record books say otherwise. I also thought I saw JoPa win a ton of games at Penn St., but apparently 14 yrs of them never existed. I thought Ohio State played football in 2010, but the books don't have them listed.
Reminds me of Orwell's 1984, when the achievements of the "comrades" who had fallen from disfavor were removed from the history books. Orwell was right.
I could have sworn I watched LA win 7 TDF titles, but the record books say otherwise. I also thought I saw JoPa win a ton of games at Penn St., but apparently 14 yrs of them never existed. I thought Ohio State played football in 2010, but the books don't have them listed.
Reminds me of Orwell's 1984, when the achievements of the "comrades" who had fallen from disfavor were removed from the history books. Orwell was right.
(CNN) -- Lance Armstrong is losing the seven cycling titles that made him a legend.
The International Cycling Union announced Monday that Armstrong is being stripped of his Tour de France titles.
"Lance Armstrong has no place in cycling," said the union's president, Pat McQuaid, announcing that Armstrong is banned from the sport.
The decision follows this month's finding by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency that there is "overwhelming" evidence that Armstrong was involved as a professional cyclist in "the most sophisticated, professionalized and successful doping program."
McQuaid said he was "sickened" by the report.
MICHELLE CHAPMAN
AP Business Writer
Published: October 22, 2012
NEW YORK (AP) — Nike has severed ties with cyclist Lance Armstrong, citing insurmountable evidence that he participated in doping and misled the company about those activities for more than a decade.
The clothing and footwear company said Wednesday that it was terminating Armstrong's contract "with great sadness."
"Nike does not condone the use of illegal performance enhancing drugs in any manner," it said in a statement.
AUSTIN — Already an outcast in cycling after a massive doping report, Lance Armstrong absorbed hits much closer to home Wednesday: to his wallet and his heart.
Armstrong was dumped by Nike, Anheuser-Busch and other sponsors, and he gave up the top spot at Austin-based Livestrong, his beloved cancer-fighting charity, a week after an anti-doping agency released evidence of drug use by the seven-time Tour de France winner.
Armstrong, 41, stepped down as chairman of Livestrong in an attempt to minimize the damage caused by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency’s report. USADA banned Armstrong from the sport for life and has ordered that his tour titles be stripped, which could come before the end of the month.
Thank god for this investigation and the stripping of the titles. Now cycling can confront their doping past and maybe, one day, look to become a more visible fringe sport than the marginal fringe sport they are today. Oh, and good thing we took this retroactive step - we don't want that Livestrong charity to keep pumping money into cancer research. As we all now, cycling's image, and what happened or didn't happen 5-15 years ago in cycling, is far more important than cancer.
I hope now we can spend several million dollars investigating the US Postal Service for how they allowed such a sophisticated system of doping (ala the guy hiding behing a hotel window curtain and looking out in the parking lot to see if anyone was coming - I mean, that's just genius-level cheating right there!) to occur, and then I hope we can spend several million dollars more on how the Justice Department failed to prosecute this case when the USADA said it was ironclad. Someone or several in government need to take the fall for this and I'm willing to spend tens of millions of dollars more in taxpayer money (beyond the tens of millions, if not more, than we've spent already on this) to get to the bottom of this. It's unconscieable (sp) that cycling has been allowed to take such a hit publicity-wise and not have people held accountable for this. For shame.
GannonFan wrote:Thank god for this investigation and the stripping of the titles. Now cycling can confront their doping past and maybe, one day, look to become a more visible fringe sport than the marginal fringe sport they are today. Oh, and good thing we took this retroactive step - we don't want that Livestrong charity to keep pumping money into cancer research. As we all now, cycling's image, and what happened or didn't happen 5-15 years ago in cycling, is far more important than cancer.
I hope now we can spend several million dollars investigating the US Postal Service for how they allowed such a sophisticated system of doping (ala the guy hiding behing a hotel window curtain and looking out in the parking lot to see if anyone was coming - I mean, that's just genius-level cheating right there!) to occur, and then I hope we can spend several million dollars more on how the Justice Department failed to prosecute this case when the USADA said it was ironclad. Someone or several in government need to take the fall for this and I'm willing to spend tens of millions of dollars more in taxpayer money (beyond the tens of millions, if not more, than we've spent already on this) to get to the bottom of this. It's unconscieable (sp) that cycling has been allowed to take such a hit publicity-wise and not have people held accountable for this. For shame.
Yeah. It would have been much easier if Dopestrong had just stayed clean.
GannonFan wrote:Thank god for this investigation and the stripping of the titles. Now cycling can confront their doping past and maybe, one day, look to become a more visible fringe sport than the marginal fringe sport they are today. Oh, and good thing we took this retroactive step - we don't want that Livestrong charity to keep pumping money into cancer research. As we all now, cycling's image, and what happened or didn't happen 5-15 years ago in cycling, is far more important than cancer.
I hope now we can spend several million dollars investigating the US Postal Service for how they allowed such a sophisticated system of doping (ala the guy hiding behing a hotel window curtain and looking out in the parking lot to see if anyone was coming - I mean, that's just genius-level cheating right there!) to occur, and then I hope we can spend several million dollars more on how the Justice Department failed to prosecute this case when the USADA said it was ironclad. Someone or several in government need to take the fall for this and I'm willing to spend tens of millions of dollars more in taxpayer money (beyond the tens of millions, if not more, than we've spent already on this) to get to the bottom of this. It's unconscieable (sp) that cycling has been allowed to take such a hit publicity-wise and not have people held accountable for this. For shame.
Yeah. It would have been much easier if Dopestrong had just stayed clean.
Allegedly.
But I'm still sure the French would've complained about something that we would've have to spend tens of millions on a decade after the fact. Word is they hate the color yellow and those braclets everyone was wearing.
Your post (a couple posts up) was very good, btw, GF. It does suck that donations will likely taper away from the Livestrong Foundation. You have to hope that there is an equilibrium to charitable contributions and they get deflected to other worthy causes elsewhere.
93henfan wrote:Your post (a couple posts up) was very good, btw, GF. It does suck that donations will likely taper away from the Livestrong Foundation. You have to hope that there is an equilibrium to charitable contributions and they get deflected to other worthy causes elsewhere.
Historical cycling record books matter more than cancer. It's just the world we live in.
93henfan wrote:Your post (a couple posts up) was very good, btw, GF. It does suck that donations will likely taper away from the Livestrong Foundation. You have to hope that there is an equilibrium to charitable contributions and they get deflected to other worthy causes elsewhere.
Historical cycling record books matter more than cancer. It's just the world we live in.
But think of the children, GF! If we don't take a zero-tolerance, no due-process crackdown on these substances our kids will be abusing eeeeeeeeeeevil substances that stimulate muscle growth and red cell production instead of becoming college students abusing sleeping pills, beta blockers, ritalin, paxil, caffeine injections, and substances that only GOOD kids use.
GannonFan wrote:
Historical cycling record books matter more than cancer. It's just the world we live in.
But think of the children, GF! If we don't take a zero-tolerance, no due-process crackdown on these substances our kids will be abusing eeeeeeeeeeevil substances that stimulate muscle growth and red cell production instead of becoming college students abusing sleeping pills, beta blockers, ritalin, paxil, caffeine injections, and substances that only GOOD kids use.
Cycling record books matter more than the children. And cancer.
GannonFan wrote:
Nonsense - the cycling record books have been saved. Everyone benefits because of that. Except for cancer.
You're right. The records books look much better now that there is no winner in the sports biggest event for 7 years in a row.
It makes all those tens of millions of taxpayer money (strangely US taxpayer money for a French cycling event) almost seem worth it. Almost. Except for cancer.
You're right. The records books look much better now that there is no winner in the sports biggest event for 7 years in a row.
It makes all those tens of millions of taxpayer money (strangely US taxpayer money for a French cycling event) almost seem worth it. Almost. Except for cancer.
Many cancer patients take drugs. If the USADA can keep them from getting drugs by cutting their funding they are doing a heck of a job.
I caught a few minutes of TV during lunch time and saw that the company that underwrote the bonuses LA received for winning the 2003, 2004, and 2005 (IIRC) TdFs is about to sue him to recoup the money. The bonuses total $9.5M plus interest, because they disputed the last bonus due to allegations of doping at the time and ended up having to pay it plus interest.
I personally do not agree with LA having to pay any money back. I just wanted to see his record stripped. That was enough, IMHO.
)
